Loved
by thespectatorion
Summary: Sakura didn't think she needed to be loved. She was rich and powerful and married to Uchiha Sasuke. What more could she want? AU. NejiSaku.
1. Chapter 1

Haruno Sakura was the richest woman in the Fire Country, as the daughter of the CEO of the _second _biggest corporation. She was lovely, too, with her long, peculiarly pink hair and her large grass-green eyes.

Uchiha Sasuke, was the richest man in the Fire Country, as the CEO of _the _biggest corporation. He was handsome, with black hair and black eyes that many women (none of whom got him) liked to read soulfulness, sorrow, grief, love, or lust into. Sakura knew better- knew that the look in those eyes was that of a shrewd, calculating businessman.

So of course they got married, as do all people who are as rich and beautiful as they were. It was practically arranged by their parents.

Uchiha Sasuke was now one of the most powerful men in the world. And Sakura was, without a doubt, the most powerful woman in the world.

However, they were not in love.

And... for the most part, that was fine by them.

* * *

Sasuke came home one night and presented a box to Sakura.

"A gift for you. Itachi said I ought to show some husband-ly care at some point."

Sakura opened the box.

"Lovely," she said, admiring the exquisite cut and setting.

"Good," said Sasuke. He made to leave, but stopped suddenly.

"Not even a note?" asked Itachi from the doorway suddenly.

They both jumped.

Sakura stared at him.

"You have to put a note, Sasuke," said Itachi, sighing.

"He does?"

"I do?"

"Yes," said Itachi. "Shows you put some time and effort into it. I always do that for Hana."

Hana was Itachi's wife- a true love-match. Sakura saw it in the way that they looked at one another and smiled no matter what, like they just couldn't help it.

She got along well with Itachi, and Hana was one of her good friends. Good thing, since they were her brother-and-sister-in-law.

"I don't have time to write notes," said Sasuke, making to leave.

Sasuke's cellphone rang.

"Gotta go," he said, and left.

Itachi sighed. "Silly little brother. I'm sorry about him."

Sakura shrugged. "It's fine."

He looked at her and frowned. "It isn't, but goodnight, Sakura-san."

He left, and Sakura looked at her ring.

For some reason, she felt a lump rise in her throat.

* * *

"Hey, Sakura."

"Sasuke?"

"I'm going to take you out to dinner tonight."

She smiled. "Oh? Where?"

"Your favorite restaurant." He didn't say the name because he'd forgotten it, but he did remember the restaurant.

"Oh, yum."

They smiled at one another. Moments like this were when they pretended they loved each other.

* * *

They walked into the restaurant, at which moment they were immediately attended to.

"Uchiha-san!" said the host, bowing formally. Well, Sakura was dressed in a formal kimono, so she supposed it made sense. That, and they were _the _Uchihas. "Your usual table, I presume?"

Sasuke nodded regally.

They were seated immediately.

"I'll have the usual," said Sakura, immediately handing her menu off to the waitress.

Sasuke pointed to what he wanted.

He really wasn't very social, Sakura thought with a small amount of affection.

They were served faster than any other couple in the room.

"So, how are you today?" asked Sakura.

"Good. You?"

"Oh, just the same as always. How is that transaction going?"

"It's going just fine. I'll need your signature on some things but that can wait." He began to eat, a clear signal he wanted to stop talking _now_.

She nodded and began to eat her food as well, knowing full well that small talk never lasted with Sasuke.

* * *

They went home after a lovely dinner, heading straight to bed- Sakura to read, and Sasuke to sleep.

Sakura's secret obsession was romance novels. She selected her favorite one from the bookshelf and began thumbing through it for her favorite scene.

_"I can't sleep at night for thinking of you," he said._

_"Nor can I."_

Sakura glanced over to Sasuke, who was snoring next to her.

She chuckled dryly.

* * *

Okay. So... please review! I don't know if I'm going to continue this, but I know almost exactly what's going to happen. This first chapter was kind of slow... but more is going to happen soon, I promise! And definitely lots of exciting stuff if I continue.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

* * *

She was sitting in the garden, wearing her ring and admiring the flowers one day weeks later.

The gardener was tending to them carefully, watering them gently and sprinkling little bits of flower food over the soil.

He looked up while she was watching him.

"Like my children?" he asked teasingly, smiling a little as he patted the soil.

She smiled back and spoke seriously. "They're lovely."

"You are Uchiha Sakura-san, I presume." She nodded. "I am Hyuuga Neji," he continued, offering a hand.

"Good to meet you."

He nodded as an answer and went on with the flowers.

After awhile he spoke. "Do you know what kinds of flowers these are?"

"I do not," she said, ashamed to admit that she didn't even know what grew in her own garden.

He began to tell her, talking of each flower and its meaning in flower language. She nodded, interested.

It didn't hurt that he was about as hot as Sasuke. Maybe even hotter. ('Course, since he was a gardener he wasn't rich, so therefore he was apparently of no interest to the local women.)

His long, _shiny _dark hair, tied in a loose ponytail, fell to about the middle of his back and swayed as he bent over. Chin-length layers hung in his face and he brushed them out of the way often with a dirty but beautiful hand (smearing his forehead with dirt that somehow _added _to his overall hotness).

Perhaps, though, the most beautiful thing about him was his eyes.

They were large, a lovely shape, and _lavender. _She had never seen eyes like his before.

He finished his little sphiel about his flowers.

"Wow," she said.

It was the only thing she _could _say.

He smiled.

"Thanks," he said.

Her cellphone rang.

"Sakura, I need your signature on some documents," Sasuke said.

"Oh-" she said, half to Sasuke and half to Neji. She covered the mouthpiece.

"It's my husband," she said. "I've got to go."

He nodded.

"Once again, nice to meet you," he said.

"Same to you."

She stood up and walked toward the gate, waving at him. "Goodbye!"

She saw him nod out of the corner of her eyes as she turned around.

* * *

Every day for the next week, she went to the gardens, and finally, finally met him again a week later.

She couldn't really say why she had looked for him so much. Maybe because he was so hot and about her age and she was still female, after all. Or maybe it was because she too liked flowers because Ino had basically _made _her like them.

Either way, exactly one week later, he was there again. Caring for the flowers.

"Uchiha Sakura-hime," he said as a greeting.

She glared at him.

"Why're you calling me that?"

"Because you look like one today," he said.

It might have been true- she was wearing her favorite, fanciest kimono and also Sasuke's fancy ring.

She blushed, thanked him almost too quietly to hear, and changed the subject.

"Do you just come on Tuesdays?"

He nodded.

"Why? Were you looking for me?"

"Yes."

He blinked and was silent.

She continued.

"I liked your talk on flowers." _Even though I spent the whole time checking you out_.

He nodded thoughtfully. "Thanks... They're very interesting to me," he added vaguely, looking at the flowers as though he didn't really see them.

"Yes," she said, also vaguely, wondering what to say next. He solved the problem.

"But I already told you about all the flowers here," he said, suddenly back to the present. "What am I to tell you about this week?"

She shrugged.

"Yourself?"

He frowned. "No, I don't think so."

"Do you have hobbies? A wife? Kids?" _A family?_ she meant.

"No."

"A girlfriend? An aging parent? Any other jobs? A favorite hobby?"

"I can answer the last one positively. Gardening."

"How about... Reading? Fishing?"

"How do those two go together?"

She had to think. Then the answer came. "Two hobbies Sasuke has."

"Ah. Your husband, right?"

"Yeah."

It grew silent.

"I talked all last week, why don't you talk this week?"

"I'd rather not."

"We understand each other's attitudes towards this, then."

"No, not really. I want to hear you talk. But I don't want to talk."

"Actually, yes. We do understand each other. It is exactly the same for me."

Those lavender eyes gazed at her, and she found herself unable to refuse.

"O-okay, then. I'll talk. You prompt."

"All right, then. First of all... tell me about yourself. What do you like? Your husband?"

She snorted at that, hardly even thinking about it before she did. "Hardly."

Neji's eyebrows raised.

"Explain."

"Our dads set it up... simply for more power and more money." She shrugged. "There's no love in the marriage, but I guess we're faithful." She played with the ring on her finger almost unconsciously.

Neji nodded. "Go on."

"I like to read. I like to look at flowers, but I've never really done much with them. My best friend is the daughter of an extremely successful flower-shop owner. She's good with flowers."

He blinked.

"Are you talking about Yamanaka Ino?"

She nodded.

"A friend of mine."

Sakura smiled. "Really?"

"She_ is_ good with flowers," Neji said.

Sakura made a mental note to talk to Ino about this guy. A voice in her mind was confused, though.

_But why am I paying so much attention to him?_

* * *

The next Tuesday, she was waiting for him.

"Hey," he said when she waved.

"I talked last week. Your turn this week."

He shrugged.

"Prompt?"

"Uh... music. Do you like music?"

"I do like music. Do you like music, Sakura-hime?"

It was clearly a nickname that was going to stick, but she didn't care. It made her smile. The annoying voice in her mind reminded her that Sasuke never gave her nicknames.

"I do like music. What kind of music do you like?"

"Ah... all kinds. Rock, rap, R&B, anything as long as it's good."

Sakura shrugged. "I like alternative rock stuff."

He blinked at her. "Really..."

She nodded.

They eyed each other suspiciously.

"I pictured you as more of a dance-electronica kind of person."

"I pictured you as a rock person. Guess we were both wrong."

"No, you were right because if I like everything then I like rock, too."

She smiled at that. "Never thought of it that way."

He shrugged and began to pay attention to the flowers again.

"Are those flowers dying?" she asked, pointing at a couple of wilted-looking flowers.

He looked over, and shook his head.

"Out of season. They'll be back soon enough."

Sakura pouted. "Aw, but they were so pretty!"

He smiled. "Sakura-hime, I can't change the seasons so your favorite flowers bloom all the time."

She glared. "I didn't mean that!"

"But I can plant new flowers. Would you like that?"

Somehow she found it impossible to stay mad, and ended up smiling instead. "Yes, thank you."

"All right."

* * *

"Oh! Neji!" exclaimed Ino. "Only the hottest male gardener in all of Konoha."

Sakura smiled. Ino was always a flirt.

"But he's also very good at what he does," Ino continued. "They seem to like him. The flowers, I mean. But the girls too. Although," she sighed heavily, "he doesn't like to date. Says he's waiting for 'The One'."

Sakura nodded slowly. How did Ino know this?

Well, knowing Ino... she had probably tried.

"Why do you ask, anyway?" said Ino, her eyes suddenly taking on a shrewd appearance.

"I just met him the other day, is all," said Sakura coolly.

Ino looked suspicious, but the topic changed.

* * *

Yay! Neji's appearance! I hope you like him as a gardener. I do. xD

I'm really anxious to get to a certain part- the part that I have written chapters ahead of where it should be because it was kinda the scene that started this story, but I'm trying to keep the story from going too fast. Dx

Again, please review!


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